3 Ridges — INT BACKPACKING (ANOTHA ONE!!!)

OVERVIEW

Next weekend seems to be The Weekend of Backpacking … so for all those waitlisters …. here’s one more!

Three Ridges is a 13.2 mile loop in George Washington Forest (~45 minutes from Charlottesville) made up of the Mau-Har and Appalachian Trails. The elevation gain for the entire loop is 3,848 … which is definitely …. a decent amount! I’ve never personally done this loop but it is described as challenging, and Cam says it is very pretty and fun.

We will be hiking the loop CLOCKWISE, striving to complete as much as the loop as we can before the sun goes down on Friday. That will allow us a more-chill Saturday, so we can be back in cville by NOON for the FOOTBALL GAME!!! Due to all of these things, I have listed this trip as intermediate, but know that YOU ARE CAPABLE and WE WANT YOU THERE. If you are confident in your hiking skills but have never been backpacking before, we think you can do this!! Know your abilities, but also know that nothing is that serious and we can always take breaks! Reach out if you have any concerns/worries/questions! (Tiffany @ 310-749-3213 & Cam @ 703-488-8892)

****also WE NEED A DRIVER!!!! If you can drive you get priority PLUS reimbursement and TIP!!!!! AND you get to play YOUR OWN AUX!!!****

The PLAN:
Friday @130pm: meet at echols
230pm: arrive @ trail head n START HIKING
730: grub/set up camp/chill/exist/solitude?
Our mileage this day will be anywhere between 7.5 and 10 miles.

Saturday:
630-7 wakeup
730am hike hike hike hike hike
11: cars
12: cville
Our mileage this day will be the remainder of the loop, maximum 5 miles.

TO BRING:
Backpacking backpack
Sleeping bag + pad
WATER (3-4 liters) – for the 7.4 mile stretch along the AT, there are no water sources (most of day one)!!!!
Hiking shoes
Clothes + layers (even though its summer … the nights get chilly!!!)
Rain gear (can also get a backpacking rain cover if you want)
Headlamp
Friday DINNER + SNACKS
Saturday BREAKFAST + snacks + lunch?
Bowl + utensils
Trashbag for rain
cards? a game to share? intellectual conversations?

We will bring:
Tents
Pocket rocket/stove/pot
Water filters

***** because there are several other backpacking trips going out next weekend, PLEASE don’t grab any gear that we will be grabbing for the group! We don’t need every single person to have a water filter and stove, we will share those! And if you have your own gear PLEASE USE THAT!!